Mid-Day Market Update: Nasdaq Surges 70 Points; Larimar Therapeutics Shares Plummet

Midway through trading Wednesday, the Dow traded up 0.13% to 34,358.03 while the NASDAQ rose 0.52% to 13,728.18. The S&P also rose, gaining 0.19% to 4,195.92.

The U.S. has the highest number of coronavirus cases and deaths in the world, reporting a total of 33,166,870 cases with around 590,950 deaths. India confirmed a total of at least 27,157,790 cases and 311,380 deaths, while Brazil reported over 16,194,200 COVID-19 cases with 452,030 deaths. In total, there were at least 167,886,350 cases of COVID-19 worldwide with more than 3,487,240 deaths, according to data compiled by Johns Hopkins University.

Leading and Lagging Sectors

Consumer discretionary shares climbed 1% on Wednesday. Meanwhile, top gainers in the sector included Express, Inc. EXPR, up 23%, and DICK'S Sporting Goods, Inc. DKS, up 17%.

In trading on Wednesday, health care shares fell 0.5%.

Top Headline

Dick's Sporting Goods, Inc. DKS reported better-than-expected Q1 results and also announced plans to buyback a minimum of $200 million of its common shares in 2021.

Dick's Sporting posted quarterly earnings of $3.79 per share, exceeding market estimates of $1.12 per share. The company’s quarterly sales came in at $2.92 billion, versus analysts’ estimates of $2.18 billion.

Dick's Sporting Goods said it sees FY21 adjusted EPS of $8.00-$8.70 and sales of $10.515 billion-$10.806 billion.

Equities Trading UP

Nabriva Therapeutics plc NBRV shares shot up 22% to $1.7999. Sinovant Sciences and Nabriva Therapeutics disclosed topline results from Phase 3 trial of lefamulin in Chinese adults with community acquired bacterial pneumonia.

Shares of Asensus Surgical, Inc. ASXC got a boost, shooting 34% to $2.7289. HC Wainwright & Co. initiated coverage on Asensus Surgical with a Buy rating and announced a price target of $4.

PDL Community Bancorp PDLB shares were also up, gaining 25% to $14.38. Ponce Bank Mutual Holding Company and PDL Community Bancorp adopted a Plan of Conversion and Reorganization, under which both companies will reorganize into a new stock holding company and will conduct a second-step stock offering of new shares.

Check out these big movers of the day

Equities Trading DOWN

Larimar Therapeutics, Inc. LRMR shares tumbled 35% to $8.72 after the FDA instituted a clinical hold on the company’s CTI-1601 clinical program as a treatment for Friedreich's Ataxia (FA), a neurodegenerative movement disorder.

Shares of CarLotz, Inc. LOTZ were down 19% to $4.23 after the company issued a company update. A leading corporate vehicle sourcing partner for CarLotz has paused consignments to the company.

Travere Therapeutics, Inc. TVTX was down, falling 18% to $14.61. Following the pre-NDA meeting, the FDA has asked Travere Therapeutics to submit additional data for the sparsentan program in focal segmental glomerulosclerosis (FSGS), characterized by scarring (sclerosis) in the kidney. Wedbush downgraded Travere Therapeutics from Outperform to Neutral and announced a $19 price target.

Commodities

In commodity news, oil traded down 0.2% to $65.96, while gold traded up 0.3% to $1,902.90.

Silver traded down 0.4% Wednesday to $27.935 while copper rose 0.5% to $4.53.

Euro zone

European shares were mostly lower today. The eurozone’s STOXX 600 rose 0.04%, the Spanish Ibex Index fell 0.15% and the German DAX 30 dropped 0.03%. Meanwhile, the London’s FTSE 100 slipped 0.01%, French CAC 40 rose 0.08% and Italy’s FTSE MIB fell 0.37%.

French consumer confidence rose to 97 in May from 95 in the prior month, while manufacturing climate indicator rose to 107 from 104.

Economics

US crude-oil inventories declined 1.7 million barrels last week, the Energy Information Administration said.

The Treasury is set to auction 5-year notes at 1:00 p.m. ET.

Federal Reserve Governor Randal Quarles will speak at 3:00 p.m. ET.

Check out the full economic calendar here